nelson



Feb. 14, 1956 c. J. NELSON 2,734,625

PACKAGING UNIT Filed Aug. 21, 1952 INVENTOR CH/IRLEf d NELSON (Lam IYM': $12M.

' ATTORNEYS United States Patent PACKAGING UNIT Charles J. Nelson, Iron Mountain, Mich.

Application August 21, 1952, Serial No. 305,651

1 Claim. (Cl. 206-47) This invention relates to improvements in containers, and particularly to an improved container for compositely but separately packaging a liquid and a powdered solid.

There are many instances in which solutions or mixtures of a liquid and a powdered solid should be made up just prior to use because of deterioration or other undesirable property changes that may occur after the materials are mixed. Familiar examples are coating compositions of the so-called liquid bronze type, and certain resin-type glues or adhesives. In such cases, it is practically essential to package the liquid and the powder separately. For merchandising purposes, however, it is also highly desirable to have small, compositely packaged units of suitably proportioned quantities of the solid and liquid ingredients.

A commonly used type of container for such composite packaging comprises an all-metal receptacle having separate compartments therein, as shown, for example, in U. S. Patents 766,587 to Bradshaw and 1,464,273 to Schopflocher. If the materials to be packaged are fairly costly, as in the case of liquid-bronze, the comparatively high cost of such containers is small in comparison with the cost of the packaged materials, and the use of such a container is not prohibitive. Where, however, the materials themselves are comparatively inexpensive, as in the case of the above-mentioned resin glues, for example, the cost of the container becomes a highly important, and in fact the controlling factor in the successful merchandising of the product in the competitive market. In such cases, the cost of metal containers, or of any suitable prior art substitute known to the present inventor, is absolutely prohibitive, and such materials cannot be marketed in small quantities if one must use containers of the earlier types.

It is, therefore, the principal object of the present invention to provide an improved container for compositely but separately packaging a liquid and a powder in a thoroughly reliable yet inexpensive manner. More specifically, it is an object of the invention to provide a container of the type described above that will be sufficiently rugged to withstand abuse in handling and shipping without leakage or separation of the packaged materials, that will be easy to fill, assemble and disassemble, that will be convenient to use, that can be rapidly and inexpensively constructed of cheap, readily available materials, and that will be compact and attractive.

In another aspect of the invention, it is an object to provide a multiple-unit container in which a number of separate packages are positioned within an open-ended tubular casing and are maintained Within the casing solely by the frictional force between the packages and the inner surface of the casing.

In accordance with the invention, the foregoing and other related objects and advantages are attained in a container wherein cylindrical receptacles of metal, plastic, fibreboard or the like are fitted tightly in stacked relation into an open-ended tubular casing of fibreboard or the like, with the parts being assembled in stacked relation.

A more complete understanding of the invention can be had by reference to the following description of an illustrative embodiment thereof, when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the parts of the container; and

Figure 2 is an enlarged vertical section through an assembled container arranged in accordance with the invention.

Referring to the drawing, a container embodying the invention comprises a cylindrical metal receptacle or can for holding a fluid such as a liquid resin or the like. The can 10 has the customary bottom wall 12, and is provided at the upper end with a channelled flange 14 adapted to receive a flange 16 of complementary shape on a removable cover 18. The contacting portions of the flanges 14, 16 are tapered slightly so that the cover 18 can be wedge-fitted onto the can ltl. This can may be a conventional container such as is used to package paint materials.

The section of the container for holding powdered material, such as resin glue filler, comprises a receptacle of fibreboard, cardboard, or the like, generally designated 15. The receptacle is made up of a relatively short fibreboard tube 20, the ends of which are closed by a pair of cup-shaped end-caps 22, 24. The side wall or flange portion 23 of the lower one of the end-caps 22 is cemented to the outside of the tube 29 to hold this endcap securely in place as a bottom for the cardboard receptacle 15. The other end-cap 24 is dimensioned to fit snugly over the opposite end of the tube it), but is readily removable for filling and emptying the receptacle 15.

It will be noted that the outside diameters of the cupshaped end-caps 22, 24 and of the can 14) are substantially identical, so that when the two receptacles 1t), 15 are placed end to end, as shown, the outside surfaces thereof form a nearly continuous cylindrical wall. The formation of the casing from non-rigid material assists in holding the receptacles in place.

In the assembled container of the present invention, the metal and cardboard receptacles 16, 15 are placed end to end in a retaining casing comprising a second tube or cylinder 26 of fibreboard, cardboard, or the like. This outer casing 26 is open at both ends, and has an inside diameter substantially equal to the outside diameters of the can 10 and of the end-caps 22, 24. With this arrangement, the two receptacles 1d, 15 are held securely together by the snugly fitting casing 26, and yet can be forced into or out of the casing quite readily by holding the casing firmly in one hand and pushing the parts 1%], 15 in or out as desired.

Preferably, the length of the casing tube 26 is made substantially equal to the combined lengths of the receptacles 10, 15. Thus arranged, the ends of the casing will be supported to prevent breakage or dubbing over in handling, and the assembled container will give the appearance of being a conventional cylindrical container with a cardboard top-cap and metal bottom.

The frictional gripping action of the snugly fitting casing 26 can be increased by loosening or roughing up some of the fibers on the inner surface thereof. This is readily done,vfor example, by stripping from the inside surface of the casing the thin, relatively smooth surfacelayer customarily found on cardboard as it is received from the manufacturer, or by omitting the smooth finish during the manufacture of the cardboard.

Prior to assembly of the container, it will be understood that the cardboard receptacle 15 will be filled with powder through the open end provided by removing the end-cap 24. Similarly, the can 16 will be filled with liquid by removing the cover 18. With the end-cap 24 and the cover 18 in place, the filled receptacles will be placed in Memes the casing in the manner described, with the end-cap 22 pressed againstthe top 18 of the metal can 10.

If desired, the casing 26 may be provided with two receptacles which have removable covers at opposite ends of the casing and arranged so'that it is not necessary to remove the receptacles from the casing. For example, the receptacle 15 may be provided with a pouring spout, as indicated in broken lines at 23 and placed in the casing 26 as indicated in Figure 2. The container 10 would then be inverted before being placed in the casing 26 so that the removable lid 18 would be exposed on the opposite end from the pouring spout 28.

From the foregoing, it can be seen that the present invention provides an extremely simple and inexpensive container for composite packaging, and one that is rugged enough to withstand considerable abuse in handling, that has an attractive appearance, and that is easy to assemble and disassemble.

What is claimed is:

A container for compositely but separately packaging a liquid and a powdered solid, said container comprising a cylindrical metal receptacle for said liquid, said receptacle having side walls, a bottom wall and a wedge-fitted removable cover, a cylindrical cardboard receptacle for said powdered solid, said cardboard receptacle having a tubular body and a pair of end-caps, said end-caps being formed as cup-shaped elements, the side walls of said end-caps fitting snugly around the outside of said tubular body, one of said end-caps having its side-wall cemented to said body and the other of said end-caps being readily removable, the outside diameters of said end-cap side walls being substantially the same as that of said metal receptacle, and a pre-formed tubular cardboard casing holding said receptacles in stacked but separable assembled relation with said metal receptacle cover pressing against said fixed end-cap, said casing being open at both ends and substan'tially'equal in length to the combined lengths of said receptacles, the inside diameter of said casing being substantially equal to said receptacle outside diameters so that said'casing fits snugly about said receptacles to hold them securely but separably in stacked assembled relation, the'inner surface of said casing being rough to increase the frictional gripping action of said casing on said receptacles.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 903,161 Barnes Nov. 10, 1908 985,106 Bradshaw Feb. 21, 1911 1,176,007 Weber Mar. 21, 1916 1,459,110 Loufek June 19, 1923 1,856,062 Houghton Apr. 26, 1932 2,005,831 Shaw a June 25, 1935 2,423,224 Card July 1, 1947 2,667,267 Amatel Jan. 26, 1954 

